


Why The Caged Bird Sings

by danvssomethingorother



Series: Freed Birds [1]
Category: The Venture Bros
Genre: Implied Sexual Assault, M/M, just two dudes watching porn together, please be nice at my attempt at smut, pretty much AU since I acknowledge I ignore some canon stuff, second part has some implied sexual content, set during Why Caged Birds Kill, start of a relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-19
Updated: 2019-02-03
Packaged: 2019-10-12 11:32:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17466770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/danvssomethingorother/pseuds/danvssomethingorother
Summary: In most cases, watching porn with another man would lead to something a little more but well, Rusty was never as desirable as he wanted to think he was.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [heavensong](https://archiveofourown.org/users/heavensong/gifts).



Two men, two beds apart, watching what turned out to be a gay porn together. Rusty glanced away, embarrassed to have ended up like this with his neighbor and wondering how he got here. The demon wasn’t hurting that much, just kinda hovering over his head, not too different from his insecurities and hang ups that often followed him around. Just another invisible, silent demon inches from his head, growling in his ear, he was sure he could have just learned to live with another one following him around. 

It couldn’t be any worse then the metaphorical shadows his father and now brother cast over him.

“Dr. Venture,” Orpheus began but paused pulling a face at an explicit sexual act on the television.

“Oh don’t be such a prude,” Rusty snarled in his direction, “He’s just giving another guy a blow job and quite frankly he’s doing a shitty job at it.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t continue this,” he stopped frowning, Rusty snickered at his face, he was trying to not say anything that might come across crass about their choice in porn.

This was far from the worst porn he had ever watched, him and Pete would never admit it in more polite company but in college they may have watched too much gay porn. Maybe experimented too much on each other to be considered as straight as they claimed but that’s what had always made them close, the denial they used to cover up their flaws and the knowledge that well neither were what they claimed to be.

Orpheus wasn’t Pete White though, he felt nothing short of embarrassment sitting with someone who didn’t know that side of him.

He couldn’t say he hadn’t thought of it before, hadn’t thought of trying to pleasure the man, his last bout of denial was just lying to himself knowing it wasn’t going to happen. Like it would never happen with Brock.

He didn’t know why he thought this would be a good idea, Orpheus wasn’t Pete or Johnny or anyone he messed with in college, he wasn’t going to watch porn with him and just ask for a blow job. They weren’t about to do anything inappropriate with each other, they were just going to sit here awkwardly watching a man who didn’t know how to give a proper blow job, choking and failing just as hard as Rusty himself was at conversing normally with another man. 

He snickered to himself remembering Dean trying to impress this man’s daughter putting together a play with his bodyguard and brother and here his father was trying to impress her father with porn. Being social enough to seal the deal with someone sexually ended with Jonas in the Venture gene pool it seemed.

“What are you giggling about?” Orpheus asked with a raised eye brow in his direction. 

“I’m watching porn with another man,” he surprised himself with his honesty, “And its not even good enough to make either of us feel anything.”

“Well that can’t be true,” Orpheus said sincerely, if not a bit naively, “I am quite happy to get the opportunity to spend time with you. Even if it is…watching…”

“Pornography not worth our 30 dollars?” Rusty finished for him, feeling bubbles of affection rising just at his smile.

“Right.”

They settled into a short silence, Rusty was ready to throw in the towel. He glanced at his neighbor, he didn’t want him, he was just doing the goodie good routine trying to help a friend out and all that. Hell, they weren’t even good enough friends to just lay in the same bed and make fun of the bad porn together getting drunk off their ass like him and White, so he really didn’t know why he suggested they watch this.

When he tried this with Brock, he at least got them booze and got them drunk enough to not notice how stupid and uncomfortable his idea of flirting was. Brock got drunk enough to let Rusty give him a hand job at least, that wasn’t about to happen with Orpheus. He really didn’t want him and Rusty was into another person who didn’t want him back.

Well, it wasn’t completely the worst time this had happened. There was Myra, he felt a shiver go down his spine remembering that disaster. She left him handcuffed to his own bed for the entire day, screaming about how he was only allowed to be into her. He had never thought kinky sex with an attractive woman after watching porn would be so miserable…so humiliating and degrading, leaving him feeling empty days after.

“Dr. Venture?” he tilted his head towards Orpheus who was staring at him with concern, “Are you alright?”

He hadn’t been for years, not since the first time he had been kidnapped at four, the first time he watched someone die in front of him. He didn’t want to freely admit that so he pulled a face, just making Orpheus’s frown deepen.

He raised his eyebrow watching Orpheus move from his own bed and sit at the edge of Rusty’s, he only frowned at the action. This wasn’t going where he wanted, it was moving into another territory entirely, Orpheus had nothing but concern on his face.

“It’s nothing…” he grumbled out, his annoyance clear but Orpheus didn’t give up on him as easily as everyone else did, placing his hand on his hand in what he must have thought was a comforting gesture.

“I don’t think it is,” he said firmly, “Maybe what you are feeling is why we are here. Maybe the Oni brought us here to resolve---”

“Oh, will you knock it off!” Rusty snarled yanking his hand away from the other man and sitting up in the bed, backing himself into a wall trying to put distance between the two men.

“My drug fueled hallucination did not bring us here to talk about my failures!” 

Orpheus’s nostrils flared in annoyance, his patience with Rusty Venture was waning. Rusty sighed, taking a deep breath, he found he didn’t want to drive Orpheus away. He wanted someone like him in his life, he needed someone like him in his life. Someone who would extend a comforting hand to him when he needed it, he didn’t know why he always pushed it away. He needed this man as much as he wanted to shove him away. He couldn’t explain it.

“Why are you always so nice to me?” he almost regretted it as soon as he said it and even Orpheus was a bit taken back by his question.

“It wouldn’t be right of me to be cruel to my land lord for no good reason,” Orpheus said with an awkward smile in his direction.

Rusty humorlessly chuckled at that, resting his head against the pealing wall paper, it was strange being around someone who wanted to be nice to him. Someone who wanted to help him for some strange reason a little deeper then I work for you. He never made it easy for people to want to be kind to him, so it only figured the first person to willingly give it to him without any animosity first was just doing it because he could be evicted.

“I don’t mean to imply you being my land lord is the only reason you deserve kindness,” Orpheus instantly corrected himself firmly becoming bold and scooting closer to Rusty, placing his hand once more on Rusty’s own.

“You carry a great deal of sadness, it hovers over you not unlike your newest demon, I can not imagine what it would be like to have bury a child, multiple times.”

Rusty let him latch onto his hand in an effort to bring him comfort making a strange warm feeling flow through him, he didn’t know if he had ever felt anything similar to this. He had always been left to pick himself up through the years, there was never time for emotion. He had never known comfort, but Orpheus was always willing to give it to someone like him.

Rusty knew it was a mistake the second he did it, but he couldn’t stop himself, he leaned forward and gently laid a kiss on the other man’s lips and to his surprise, he didn’t pull away. Caressing his cheek a moment before breaking the kiss off, a frown on his face that set off Rusty’s fight or flight instincts. Stupid, he was always such an idiot taking everything too fast…

It was Rusty’s turn to be surprised feeling Orpheus gently pull him down next to him on the bed, stroking his finger across his bald head.

It was suffocating for the first few minutes, almost like being trapped the tighter the other man pulled him closer to him, his head caged by those long fingers to the other man's chest forced to listen his heart beat washing away his panic and his fingers messaging away his fears. It took a moment but, it soon became the most comfort Rusty had ever felt, he didn’t understand it, he didn’t think he could after so many years of misery but he never wanted it to end.

“I’m not about to take advantage of you while you are vulnerable,” he said firmly, “I have a bit more honor then that.”

“I’m going to guess your last partners did not,” he said with a sigh at Rusty’s confusion, “One in particular who seems to cloud your thoughts.”

Myra, he had to be talking about Myra, he almost laughed at that. The last time he had gotten farther then a hand job or a kiss was with a beautiful woman who made every sexual encounter miserable. He was desperate and she was there, so he never stopped to care how empty she left him, maybe he was just a miserable man unable to enjoy things.

He couldn’t appreciate the last woman he slept with and he probably wouldn’t appreciate this man, this man who deserved so much either.

“Maybe after we deal with the Oni, we can maybe go out to dinner?” Orpheus asked almost nervously, unaware of the thoughts that clouded Rusty’s mind for once making him snicker.

“Only if you are buying…”

“Kay…” he answered with a nervous laugh and letting Rusty give him another awkward, almost desperate kiss before settling down next to him in the bed, turning to something less awkward then a bad porno.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sexy stuff goes on at the end, I mean not the best sexy stuff but I tried.

“Is Myra truly the boys’ mother?”

Rusty paused, setting down the drink he had previously been pouring for the other man. Quickly he glanced around the room, sighing in relief seeing that Brock had kept his end of the bargain and they wouldn’t be walking in on what was going to be an awkward, conversation.

“No, she’s not.”

He was satisfied with his response, going back to making the man a drink but Orpheus was far from satisfied with that answer. Rising from the chair he had previously been sitting in and pushing down the cup Rusty had been about to pour whiskey into, nearly spilling it all over the other man’s hand. 

Rusty sighed loudly at the man’s concern, he didn’t know why he was bringing this up now. It had been a month since the Oni incident and well, they were getting no closer to sleeping together with Orpheus’s gentleman routine and Rusty wasn’t about to go telling people he was a little more then friends with his neighbor, so they were at a stalemate as it stood. A little too close to be just friends but neither willing to go the extra mile to be romantically involved with each other.

“I just ask because she seemed very convinced she was and you have lacked your usual luster since she came back into your life.”

“The woman is a nut job,” Rusty snapped taking a swig from the bottle, “Last time she was around, she tried to burn us all alive in the lab.”

Rusty expected the conversation to end there, it usually did, if he brought up a harder topic to swallow, most just dropped it and let the conversation change. Even Brock tended to drop things when he brought up a trauma, not wanting another episode from his employer.

Not Byron though, he almost smiled realizing he was having a strong enough effect on him to start referring to him by his first name.

“Thaddeus, closing yourself off will do no one any good.”

He did smile at that settling almost smugly on the couch, no one called him Thaddeus. He tried for years to get it to catch on but he was just Rusty Venture.

“Oh for god’s sake,” Rusty moaned loudly in annoyance being as dramatic as he could throwing himself back on the couch, tilting his annoyed expression back towards the man, “Will you knock it off. I sent the boys away so you could come over, are we going to watch this movie or not?”

“Very well,” the other man sighed out walking gracefully and looking as dramatic as usual sweeping his cape as he sank down next to Rusty, blushing as he put his hands on his own lap not wanting to get handsy right away.

Rusty didn’t know why, this was their fourth date and he was nervous about touching Rusty in a way that would be ‘taking advantage of him’. Byron Orpheus had an odd way of thinking of things. Pete White was the biggest coward he knew but in college he had never thought like this if he even got the opportunity to not spend the night alone. Hell, they still did it. Lonely nights where they were half drunk and Brock had company, they still found themselves giving each other hand jobs to ward off the truth that they were going to be forever alone.

Rusty felt a strange weight on his stomach, an intense anxiety that made him just as stiff as Orpheus. If he didn’t mess this up, maybe he wouldn’t be alone anymore and what would that mean?

“Please tell me you found something other than pornography for us to watch?”

Rusty gave him a smug smile, the first time they had even considered these feelings they watched porn together at Rusty’s suggestion, that was going to be something he hung over his head till the day they died. Maybe even after death.

“It’s a musical,” he assured him glancing down at Orpheus’s twitching hands and his own arms stiffly folded across his chest as the movie began. What a wonderful start, neither were willing to make a move. Just like the first four dates.

They got closer when Rusty made them watch porn, maybe there was a method to his madness. 

“Where did you send Triana off to?”

Small talk was better then getting his mind back on fixing Rusty Venture (an impossible feat) and Rusty knew exactly how to get the other man talking without the focus going back to him.

“My pumpkin is at home,” he said side eying Rusty more then a little on to him diverting the conversation away from where it had started, “She is responsible enough to take care of herself now.”

“Not at all afraid she is going to raid daddy’s liquor cabinet while you are away?”

“Now see here,” Orpheus began clearly offended he was suggesting wrong doing of his only child, “My pumpkin is a good girl who would never think of such a thing!” 

“A girl dressed like that doesn’t just listen to what daddy says,” Rusty snickered and rolled his eyes as the man jumped from the couch in almost rage, he was a drama queen about everything.

“You sir,” Orpheus proclaimed pointing towards him, an ominous glow settling around him trying to rile Rusty, but that just wasn’t going to happen today. Rusty knew he wouldn’t do anything, he was too afraid to do anything sexual in nature with him unless it ‘hurt him’ he doubted he would escalate to physically harming him.

“Need to watch your suggestions on what my daughter will and will not do!”

Rusty just titled his head, somewhere between frustrated with himself for ruining what could have been a relaxing evening and feeling a tad bit petty, more then willing to ruin their date and relationship knowing it was going to end anyway, knowing he would never open up for this man like he wanted to. Maybe even feeling a bit angry the man expected that of him. On some level he hated his kindness more then he hated Myra’s obsession, he knew it would destroy him faster.

Yet, on another level, he craved it having gone a life time without very many people giving him genuine kindness that didn’t have a price tag attached to it.

“Your teenage daughter sneaking booze would hardly be the end of the world,” he said with an eye roll.

“You are implying more then that with that tone!” Orpheus bellowed pointing at him accusingly making Rusty sink further into the couch cushions more annoyed and embarrassed it was ending up like this then anything. 

“If I was implying anything, maybe you shouldn’t encourage a girl like to just do whatever she wants!”

Rusty knew he should have bit his tongue as soon as the words slipped out, he didn’t mean the words, he didn’t care enough about what Triana Orpheus did to mean them as long as she didn’t try anything with Dean. But he said them anyway, almost deciding all at once to shove the other man out now before this went anywhere. He was already changing being around the man, he hadn’t popped a pill in days, he had been humming as he worked again happier then he had been in years just thinking about someone who might love him.

It was hitting him all at once he wouldn’t handle this forever, Orpheus would continue to want more from him. He would want to dig deeper and Rusty knew he would just leave at the mess he found, so might as well shove him away now, saving himself yet another heart ache.

“Are you saying I am a bad parent? That is a laugh coming from you, Sir!”

Rusty knew he was only saying that because he was hurt he was implying anything about his baby girl but Rusty had to laugh, he wasn’t wrong. He could barely call himself a parent some days and he would be a fool to lie about that.

Orpheus seemed to deflate collapsing back on the couch hearing Rusty’s chuckles, not even trying to argue with him about his parenting.

“I’m going to make another drink, do you want one or are you just going to leave?”

Orpheus huffed, feathers still ruffled from Rusty’s earlier comments but surprisingly, he was still here, that scared Rusty more then him turning violent. He insulted his parenting and implied his kid was far from a perfect princess and he wasn’t leaving.

Rusty tentatively mixed himself a drink, then made another and soon had downed three, not bothering to turn back to the other man on the couch. The date might as well be over at this point, Brock would be back soon and neither were talking to each other anyway. The only noise in the room was the TV, Rusty laughed to himself about the romantic song accompanying their ruined moment.

“You aren’t a bad parent alright?” Rusty finally hissed in the other man’s direction, “I’m the bad parent here and we all know it.”

“I may have been too---”

Rusty quickly cut Orpheus off with a loud ‘hmph’ it wouldn’t do any good to lie about it, he was a bad parent. His teeth ground a bit at his own internal honesty, he lived in his own delusions that things could be better, facing reality wasn’t always easy.

He pushed aside his glass and just took the bottle of vodka, it was as bitter as admitting the truth. He was just as shitty of a parent as his father. His shaky hands went for the pill container in his chest pocket but was surprised to find Orpheus’s hand gently pushing it away from his addiction.

“I don’t believe a parent who didn’t at least care about their children would go to such lengths of bringing them back every time they died.”

Rusty just scoffed at that, pushing the man’s hand and concern away to dig out his addiction and pop a few pills before taking another long swig from the bottle.

“Why are you even here?” Rusty finally demanded pointing his bottle in the other man’s direction, tipsy enough to be brutally honest with the other man, what did Byron Orpheus even have to gain being with Rusty Venture? Rusty could gain something but Rusty couldn’t comprehend what he would gain being with him. Maybe his money? He had to laugh at that, his father’s fortunes were wilting and dying just as fast as his son was.

Orpheus fidgeted at the accusation, taking a deep breath and seeming to consider the question as well. Why was he wasting his time with him?

Rusty raised his eyebrow watching Orpheus begin to chuckle, settling down next to him, a sad smile gracing his lips as he placed his hand on Rusty’s.

“I have been where you sit now,” he said with a dry, humorless chuckle, “When I was a younger, much more foolish man, I pushed everything in my life away only pursuing my own selfish needs. I devoted my entire existence to my work and while I became one of the most revered men in my line of work, I am afraid I failed in everything around me. My wife, a woman I loved dearly, went neglected and instead of meeting her needs, I often shooed her away. It took me fifteen years to take my head out of my own rear end long enough to take an active interest in my daughter’s life, she was nearly a woman when I decided to be a parent.”

Rusty set the bottle down and really took in the other man, feeling his past failures rolling off him in waves just by the look in his eyes. A look Rusty knew well, regretting your actions and the path you took.

But… Orpheus was changing, Rusty was still stuck in the past and he didn’t know if he could ever leave that state of mind.

“I don’t know the trauma you have been through, it must be greater then just getting lost in your own selfishness and destroying your own marriage. I know you are better then you think Dr. Venture. I feel it inside you. You are so much better then you think you are. I am here as you say because though you may be thick headed and often dismissive, you are also witty and have an adventurous soul that makes you a pleasure to be around. Though you may deny it, I see the way you look at your boys, longing for a simpler time when you openly loved them. You have a kind heart under your trauma and if I may, I wish to stick around long enough to see it emerge.”

Damn this man, always bringing these emotions out of him, he was openly crying again. In front of this damn man. He hated it and he wanted so badly to hate him for making him break like this again but he found he couldn’t. 

Orpheus pulled him to the couch, letting him get ahold of himself there, gasping against his shoulder for a few minutes letting a few stray tears fall before gently cupping the other man’s cheek, staring into his concerned eyes, those weird feelings brewing harder in him.

He pressed his lips against the other man’s and was pleased to find him pulling him close to him. 

He broke away from their long awaiting kiss, breathing huskily he just wanted to please him, he wanted to return some of these strange feelings he had for this man. He wanted to please him and he was pleased to find the man wasn’t going to deny his request.

Rusty had been here before, so many times in college, a few months ago him and White had been drunk enough to be here. Rusty desperate and lonely, sunk down on his knees before another man, unzipping his pants and pressing his lips playfully against his member.

Rusty was usually just drunk and needy, pushing closer, going too rough, just needing to feel close to someone else.

He was still desperate as usually as he messaged and teased his dick until he was fully erect, smiling at his moan, wanting more, sighing it had been so long.

Rusty ran his tongue across his shaft, smiling brighter feeling his hips buck back in pleasure as he playfully slid his entire mouth around it, pushing back farther and farther, slow at first but gaining speed at his moan of pleasure.

He felt Orpheus cupping the back of his bald head, gently begging him to go harder, shoving his head forward, but keeping his grip lax enough in case Rusty wanted to pull away.

He wanted to make this man happy he found, he wanted him to feel pleasure, this wasn’t just about being desperate and needy and drunk.

He wanted this to work and he would make it do so even if he found himself on his knees every night before this man. 

They both went lax as Orpheus finally came, both panting and almost laughing as they both rose up, Orpheus pulling him into arms and lying down across the couch without even bothering to zip up his pants as Rusty rested his head against his chest, feeling a warm feeling settle in his heart as Orpheus kissed him on the forehead.

Both falling into a doze on the couch as the movie continued to play in the back ground.

It could be worse, Rusty had known worse with Myra, but Orpheus wasn’t that.

He made him feel like he could change and that was all he needed in this world.


End file.
